Listening to music can help me focus better. Since I discovered it two years ago，I've used music to get through boring work or to focus creatively. I've found that it can make even the dullest jobs enjoyable and help clear mental blocks to creativity.
I first noticed the good effects of music while playing video games. It was a few days before Christmas in 2005 and I was playing online video games. My parents had just given me a new MP3，so I decided to listen to music through the headphones while I played. After a few minutes I noticed a great change in my style of play. I was playing more naturally. The music relaxed me，and，to a certain extent，distracted me from the game，allowing my subconscious(潜意识的)talent to come through. The music also helped me block out the outside world. With those headphones on I was like a machine，moving from one task to the next without unnecessary thoughts or actions.
Music can also have a great effect on mood. If I'm in a bad mood at work，I'll listen to some of Bob Marley's and get down to business. It always takes my mind off what I'm doing and makes me a happier person. The same is true for classic rock. One summer，I did a boring job collecting bottle openers by hand. Without a radio playing classic rock in the background，I would have hated life.
Listening to music with relaxing rhythms and a positive message helps you forget your work and think happy thoughts. But the results you see will depend heavily on your personal tastes. Experiment with the types of music you listen to during certain tasks. By trial and error you'll finally discover your best choice.
I'm always looking for new concentration aids，so I'd love to know what type of music works best for me. We can infer that the passage was written in ________.
| A．2005 | B．2006 | C．2007 | D．2008 |
The author first discovered the effects of music ________.
| A．from his parents | B．by chance | C．at work | D．when he was a child |
The author mentions the experience of collecting bottle openers in Paragraph 3 to ________.
| A．tell us that life is dull | B．prove that music affects mood |
| C．tell us how to seek happiness | D．tell us bad mood can affect work |
The term, culture shock, describes the anxiety produced when a person moves to a completely new environment. This term expresses the lack of direction, the feeling of not knowing what to do, and not knowing what is appropriate or inappropriate. The feeling of culture shock generally sets in after the first few weeks of coming to a new place.
We can describe culture shock as the physical and emotional discomfort one suffers when coming to live in another country or place. Often, the way that we lived before is not accepted as or considered as normal in the new place. Everything is different, for example, not speaking the language, not knowing how to use banking machines and so forth.
Although one can experience real pain from culture shock, it is also an opportunity for resetting one' s life objectives. It is a great opportunity for learning and acquiring new viewpoints. Culture shock can make one develop a better understanding of oneself.
Culture shock has many stages. The first stage is called the "honeymoon" stage. The new arrival may feel excited as everything is new.
In the second stage, a person may encounter some difficult times in daily life. For example, communication difficulties may occur such as not being understood. There may be feelings of discontent, anger, sadness, and feeling incompetence. This happens when a person is trying to adapt to a new culture. Transition (过渡) between the old methods and those of the new country is a difficult process and takes time to complete.
The third stage is characterized by gaining some understanding of the new culture. One may start to feel a certain psychological balance. The new arrival may start to have a feeling of direction and want to belong.
In the fourth stage, the person realizes that the new culture has good and bad things to offer. The person has a more solid feeling of belonging and starts to set goals for living.
The fifth stage is called the " re-entry shock". This occurs when a return to the
country of origin is made. One may find that things are no longer the same. For example, some of the newly acquired customs are not in use in the old culture.
Many factors (因素) contribute to the length and effects of culture shock. For example, the individual's state of mental health, type of personality, previous experiences, familiarity with the language, and level of education. So the five stages are present at different times and each person has their own way of reacting. 64. What do we learn about culture shock?What do we learn about culture shock?
| A．It has negative effect on people. |
| B．Its effect can differ from person to person. |
| C．It disappears when people return to their homelands. |
| D．It can be avoided if one can understand the language. |
Which stage of culture shock is Tommy in?
Tommy moved to France with his parents two months ago.
But now he still can not get used to the life there.
He also has problems in schooling.
Even worse, he doesn't think anybody cares about him.
| A．Stage 2. | B．Stage 3. | C．Stage 4. | D．Stage 5. |
The main purpose of the passage is to________
| A．discuss and clarify | B．argue and advise |
| C．introduce and explain | D．compare and evaluate |
If there's one thing I' ve learned from my years of being a kid, it' s that you have ZERO control over your own life.
Ever since school ended, I haven' t had anything I' ve needed to do or anywhere I' ve needed to be. As long as the air-conditioning(空调) was working and the TV remote had batteries in it, I was ready for a relaxing summer holiday.
But then, out of the blue, this happened - " Pack your bags. We' re going on a road trip ! " Mom said excitedly.
This isn't the first time Mom has sprung a trip on us without any warming. Last year on the first day of summer, she said we were going .to visit Aunt Loretta at the nursing home.
It wasn't exactly my idea of a fun way to kick off the summer. One time when we visited Aunt Loretta, her roommate grasped me and wouldn't let me go until someone gave her a chocolate cookie !
Mom kept talking about going to the nursing home for a whole day, which made me worry a lot. But at breakfast the next morning, she told us where we were really going - Disney World.
I was very happy, because I was really worried about spending the whole week at the nursing home. So was Dad.
But when my little brother, Danny, heard about the change he became very angry. Mom had talked up the Aunt Loretta trip so much that Danny was actually excited about going there.
We ended up putting off our trip to Disney so we could visit Aunt Loretta.
I tried to talk Mom into letting us do something normal, like going to a water park for the day, but she didn't want to hear it. She said that spending a lot of time together in the car would be a " bonding" experience for the whole family.What did the author prefer to do during his summer holidays?
| A．Visit Aunt Loretta. |
| B．Travel with his family. |
| C．Look after his little brother. |
| D．Watch TV comfortably at home. |
From the passage, we can learn that the author_______
| A．loved his aunt very much |
| B．got pretty excited about the road trip |
| C．felt helpless with his mother's surprise trips |
| D．blamed Danny for not going to Disney World |
Who makes the final decision in the family?
| A．The author. | B．Mom. | C．Dad. | D．Aunt Loretta |
The author wrote the passage to_______
| A．remember his mother |
| B．tell the story of his aunt |
| C．express his love for his brother |
| D．share with readers his childhood experiences |
The Tropical Paradise Holiday
Welcome to St Anna, our tropical paradise just off the coast of Latin America. You can spend two weeks in our luxury four-star hotel. The cost of your flight is included in the holiday, and you can be picked up from your home by our special airport bus. On your arriving, our coach will be waiting to take you to the hotel. All flights leave from Heathrow on a Monday morning.
The Cowrie Hotel is built right on the beachfront, and many rooms have wonderful ocean views. If swimming and surfing are not enough for you, the hotel also offers horse rides on the island, and a discount membership of the golf club.
The Rain Forest Adventure Holiday
Every year Broughton holidays offer twelve days of unforgettable adventure in a tropical rain forest. You may have a choice of Borneo, Malaysia, Indonesia, or even to the greatest rain forest of them all, the mighty Amazonian forest.
You will fly to our special base camps at the edge of the forest, where you will be given five days of survival training, and talks on the local wildlife.
Then you take a bus into the forest. You will have to walk the final five miles to the camp sites to avoid disturbing the local ecology. All of the camp sites have been carefully built to cause the minimal amount of disturbance to the local wildlife.
Remember that these adventure holidays take you deep into the wilderness,and they are not suitable for families with young children. Also remember that no more than two dozen guests can stay at any camp at one time, so if you want to go on one of these very special holidays, you will need to book early ! Choosing the Tropical Paradise Holiday, travellers can enjoy ______.
| A．a welcome party |
| B．beautiful ocean views |
| C．different indoor activities |
| D．free membership of the golf club |
What can we learn about the rain forest holiday?
| A．Different means of transportation will be used. |
| B．Travelers will learn to talk with wild animals. |
| C．The holiday will end with a survival training. |
| D．Booking early, travelers will get a discount. |
What kind of people will probably choose the rain forest holiday?
| A．People loving water sports. |
| B．People travelling with children. |
| C．People preferring comfortable hotels. |
| D．People concerned with environment and wildlife. |
Which of the following is mentioned in both holidays?
| A．Price. | B．Transportation. |
| C．Reservation. | D．Departure time. |
Lost iPhone
Unexpectedly, I lost my white iPhon5s in Midtown on Friday night. It had a blue green cover on it. There are many pictures of my son on it, and I’m heartbroken. Please return, no questions asked. Reward. Reply to: 2652255359@craigslist.org
Do you need a babysitter that you can trust?
My name is Tina. I am a responsible babysitter that you can trust. If you are looking for someone dependable and affordable I am that person! I HAVE MORE THAN 30 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE (including disabled children) ! I am a retired Home Health Aid and absolutely love children. I work with my sister Iris who has also 20+years as a teacher’s assistant. WE LOOK FORWARD TO MEETINC YOU! Available 24 hours and flexible with fees! I am fully bilingual—Spanish/English. Please email me or call 712-867-7688.
I BABYSIT ONLY AT MY HOME.
I accept children from all ages. Fee starts from $100-$150 a week depending on the hours. I am very flexible and my fee can change. Feel free to contact me via email or on my cell phone 566-67-1873 and we can work something out.
Part-time Chinese Babysitter Wanted
Part-time Chinese speaking babysitter needed to assist with one-year-old twins and to perform some light housework as needed. Assistance needed Fridays and occasional weekends. Please provide your salary expectation. College students are welcome to apply.
Reply to: 2652113885 @craigslist.orgWho posted the lost and found information?
| A．A mother | B．A kind woman |
| C．A heartbroken girl | D．A parent |
What do we know about Tina?
| A．She can speak two languages. |
| B．She lives alone now. |
| C．She takes care of children over 3. |
| D．She used to be a teacher’s assistant. |
If you want to send your kids to the babysitter’s home, you can find one in______.
| A．Ad 1 | B．Ad 2 | C．Ad 3 | D．Ad 4 |
Sparrow is a fast-food chain with 200 restaurants. Some years ago, the group to which Sparrow belonged was taken over by another company. Although Sparrow showed no sign of declining, the chain was generally in an unhealthy state. With more and more fast-food concepts reaching the market, the Sparrow menu had to struggle for attention. And to make matters worse, its new owner had no plans to give it the funds it required.
Sparrow failed to grow for another two years. Until a new CEO, Carl Pearson, decided to build up its market share. He did a survey, which showed that consumers who already used Sparrow restaurants were extremely positive about the chain, while customers of other fast-food chains were unwilling to turn away from them. Sparrow had to develop a new promotional campaign.
Pearson faced a battle over the future of the Sparrow brand. The chain’s owner now favored rebranding Sparrow as Marcy’s restaurants. Pearson resisted, arguing for an advertising campaign designed to convince customers that visits to Sparrow restaurants were fun. Such an attempt to establish a positive relationship between a company and the general public was unusual for that time. Pearson strongly believed that numbers were the key to success, rather than customers speeding power. Finally, the owner accepted his idea.
The campaign itself changed the traditional advertising style of the fast-food industry. The TV ads of Sparrow focused on entertainment and featured original songs performed by a variety of stars. Instead of showing the superiority of a specific product, the intension was to put Sparrow in the hearts of potential customers.
Pearson also made other decisions which he believed would contribute to the new Sparrow image. For example, he offered to lower the rent of any restaurants which achieved a certain increase in their turnover (营业额).
These efforts paid off, and Sparrow soon became one of the most successful fast-food chains in the regions where it operated.Which was one of the problems Sparrow faced before Pearson became CEO?
| A．The number of its customers was declining |
| B．Its customers found the food unhealthy |
| C．It was in need of financial support |
| D．Most of its restaurants were closed |
What does the underlined word “them” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
| A．customers of Sparrow restaurants |
| B．Sparrow restaurants |
| C．customers of other fast-food chains |
| D．other fast-food chains |
For what purpose did Pearson start the advertising campaign?
| A．To build a good relationship with the public. |
| B．To stress the unusual tradition of Sparrow. |
| C．To learn about customers’ spending power. |
| D．To meet the challenge from Marcy’s restaurants. |
What was Pearson’s achievement as a CEO?
| A．He managed to pay off Sparrow’s debts. |
| B．He made Sparrow much more competitive. |
| C．He helped Sparrow take over a company. |
| D．He improved the welfare of Sparrow employees. |
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